Ecommerce platform provider Shopify has acquired award-winning Select Start Studios Inc. (“S3”), also based in Ottawa. This strategic acquisition will allow the company to rapidly execute on their mobile growth strategy, and is the first major investment since raising $15 million in Series B funding on October 17, 2011.

Tobias Lütke, founder and CEO of Shopify, launched the company in 2004 with the goal of redefining how people build online stores. Today, the ecommerce platform has over 20,000 active online stores in 80 different countries. Over 2,000 of Shopify’s stores are based in Canada. Individuals, entrepreneurs, and businesses use the SaaS ecommerce platform to create and power their online stores. Shopify is known for its ease of use, beautiful store designs, and scalability.

“After seeing a massive increase in mobile transactions at Shopify, we believe there is great demand and opportunity for mcommerce,” said Lütke. “The S3 acquisition brings in top talent that will rapidly deliver on our mobile strategy, and produce several new mobile product offerings this year.”

Tariq Zaid, co-founder and CEO of S3, will be joining Shopify with his team of over 20 mobile engineers and designers. “We’re thrilled to be joining Shopify to execute on the company’s mobile initiative,” said Zaid. “Their focus on mobile, deep understanding of technology, and overall culture make this a natural fit. We’re already cooking up some really exciting innovations that show just how game changing mcommerce will be.”

S3 will be joining Shopify in their new 17,000 sq ft headquarters in Ottawa’s ByWard Market. The company’s new office was inspired by Google and Facebook’s Silicon Valley offices. The space features creatively designed working areas, a massive breakfast bar, catered lunches from local restaurants every day, and employees enjoy undefined working hours. Shopify is currently retrofitting a large two-story space adjacent to the office as their staff lounge.

This acquisition is on the heels of another record year for Shopify. Almost 4 million orders added up to $275 million in sales, and its headcount more than doubled to over 100 full-time employees. If you’re interested in a career at Shopify, please visit the Shopfiy careers page.